The mineral element composition was analyzed for varieties of microgreens, representing 10 species within 6 genera of the Brassicaceae family. Brassicaceae microgreens were assayed for concentrations of macroelements, including calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), phosphorous (P), sodium (Na), potassium (K), and of microelements, including copper (Cu), iron (Fe), manganese (Mn), and zinc (Zn). Determinations of mineral elements in microgreen samples were performed using an inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrophotometer (ICP OES). Potassium was the most abundant macroelement ranging from 176-387 mg/100 g fresh weight (FW), followed by P (52-86 mg/100g FW), Ca (28-66 mg/100g FW), Mg (28-66 mg/100g FW), and Na) 19-68 mg/100g FW. Among the microelements, Fe tended to be most abundant (0.47-0.84 mg/100g FW), followed by Zn (0.22-0.51 mg/100g FW), Mn (0.17-0.48 mg/100g FW), and Cu (0.041-0.13 mg/100g FW). Based upon the analysis of 30 varieties, the results demonstrate that microgreens are good sources of both macroelements (K and Ca) and microelements (Fe and Zn.). Consumption of microgreens could be a health-promoting strategy to meet dietary reference intake requirements for essential elements beneficial to human health.

Poultry production is concentrated on Maryland's eastern shore on areas with sandy soils low in sesquioxideso Water quality has been affected by runoff and leaching of phosphorus from poultry litteramended fields. Phosphorus movement is of major concern because P is a limiting nutrient for eutrophication in surface water. The objectives of this study were to (i) evaluate the ability of AI-rich drinking water treatment residue (DWTR) and iron-rich residue (IRR) reduce water-soluble P and Bray and Kurtz no. 1-extractable phosphorus (BK-1 P) in poultry litter and three long-term litter-amended soils and (it) determine the effects of these residues on pH and electrical conductivity (EC) in the amended litter and soils. Poultry litter and soils were treated with four rates of DWTR and IRR and incubated for 7 wk at 25°C. Litter and soils were sampled at 2, 4, and 7 wk. Both residue materials increased the pH of the litter and the soils. The DWTR was more effective in reducing both water-soluble P and BK-1 P in litter at all rates. At the 25 and 50 g kg-1 rates, reductions in water-soluble P with IRR were comparable with that of DWTR, but DWTR was twice as effeclive as IRR in reducing BK-1 P concentration. The results showed that water-soluble P and BK-I P in poultry litter and long-term litter-amended soils can be substantially reduced by incorporating residues rich in AI and Fe; these residues may be useful for reducing P runoff and leaching from poultry litter and litteramended fields. T HE high demand for poultry products in the USA in recent years has caused a dramatic increase in the growth of the poultry industry (USDA Agricultural Research Service, 1997, p. 26-54). Increased poultry production has, in turn, resulted in a corresponding increase in the amount of poultry litter (manure mixed with straw, wood chips, sawdust, or peanut hulls) that must be disposed of. Maryland, a state with a long history of poultry production, currently ranks seventh in the nation in broiler production. Maryland produced 636 million kg of broilers (live weight) in 1996 that generated approximately 400 million kg of litter (Maryland Agricultural Statistics Service, 1996). Poultry litter typically contains 8 to 25.8 g P kg-1 dry weight, with about 4.9 g P kg-1 being water-soluble reactive P, because P is added to chicken (Gallus gallus) diets to ensure rapid growth (Edwards and Daniel, 1992). Most of the poultry litter produced in Maryland has been applied to relatively small areas of cropland in close proximity to the chicken houses (Sims and Wolf, 1994). Many of the soils in the poultry production areas of Maryland are coarse textured, low in clay and sesquioxides, which are important in immobilizing P, and have shallow water tables (Mozaffari and Sims, 1994). Re

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